Nordic Music Prize er en årlig pris som skal kåre det beste albumet det siste året. Prisen ble først introdusert i 2010, og initiert av by:Larm. Prisen deles ut på by:Larm hvert år.

Prisen skal bl.a. skape en sterkere tilknytning i mellom de nordiske landene, øke internasjonal interesse og vise at fullengderen fortsatt er en viktig kunstform.

Tidligere vinnere inkluderer store artister som First Aid Kit, Hildur Guðnadóttir, The Knife, Jenny Hval, Susanne Sundfør og Robyn.

Årets nominerte er:

Island:

Sóley – Mother Melancholia (oktober 2021)
Jury statement: “One long meditation on the state of the world, in turns pretty and horrific.”

Gyða Valtýsdóttir – Ox (Diamond, desember 2021)
Jury statement: “A sturdy yet elegant album – delicate and powerful at the same time.”

Finland:

Yeboyah – Perhosefekti (Sony Music Entertainment Finland, september 2021) Jury statement: “Yeboyah deals with big issues: how to live in modern Finland as a young afro-Finnish woman and, how to deal with racism and misogyny.”

Richard Dawson & Circle – Henki (Domino Recording Co Ltd, november 2021) Jury statement: “Henki is a beautiful and strong album where Circle’s hypnotic metal and krautrock mixes together with Dawson’s prog rock and folk influences.”

Sepikka – En kestä kylmää lailla ahvenen (M.dulor, Sept 2021)
Jury statement: “Sepikka builds charming soundcapes and manages to stretch his musical expression from lo-fi to catchy pop hooks and flamboyantly orchestrated wall of sound.”

Danmark:

Astrid Sonne – outside of your lifetime (Escho, september 2021)
Jury statement: “A team effort, incorporating vocal harmonies, strings and guitars into Astrid Sonne’s trademark artistic universe of calm abstraction and futuristic elegance.”

Brimheim – can't hate myself into a different shape (W.A.S. Entertainment, januar 2022) Jury statement: “Goth-tinged, heartfelt alt rock songs with lots of drama and sweeping choruses.”

Norge:

Bendik Giske – Cracks (Smalltown Supersound, 27. august 2021)
Jury statement: “A further deconstruction of his instrument, inspired by queer theory and with elements of techno and studio wizardry."

Benedicte Maurseth - Hárr (Hubro, 25. februar 2022)
Jury statement: “An homage to her home region, where elements of traditional folk and free improvisation interwoven with found sounds such as birds, reindeer and running water.”

Jenny Hval - Classic Objects (4AD, 11. mars 2022)
Jury statement: “Even when Jenny Hval makes straightforward pop songs and goes "small", she manages to push boundaries and create something new.”

Sverige:

Maja Francis – A Soft Pink Mess (RMV Grammofon AB, september 2021) Jury statement: “Maja Francis has created her own little sparkling pink galaxy in the Swedish pop universe.”

David Ritschard – Blåbärskungen (Rötjut/United Stage Management Group, september 2021)
Jury statement: “David Ritschard's alt-country pop is a bombshell in the all-digital, over-produced hiphop- and pop era.”

DEN NORDISKE JURYEN SIER FØLGENDE:

“As usually, putting together a twelve album shortlist for the Nordic Music Prize was an enriching experience. But at the same time happily difficult! The quality and diversity within the Nordic region continues to dazzle and the list manages to juggle an enticing variety of musical output - be it style, age, region or gender wise - running the gamut from accessible indie-pop to experimental avant-garde and picking up urban vibes and gothic Nordic-noir on the way. The prize will doubtless, as it has done since it's inception in 2010, increase international interest and awareness of what the Nordic countries have to offer musically while providing a highly visible platform for the already vibrant scene.”

Vinneren av Nordic Music Prize kunngjøres under prisseremonien på by:Larm 15. september.